The next day found Trysten fully rested, awakening before all others in her dorm. As the faintest traces of light filtered in the tower windows, she crept to the dormitory showers to prepare for the day. Clean and towel-clad, she made her way back to her bed, quickly changing into her school uniform. Before the others awoke, she left the Ravenclaw dormitories, heading for the kitchens. Tentatively, for it was still the very early morning, she went through the necessary steps to open the door. As she swung it open, she was surprised to see that the majority of the house-elves were already out and moving. One in particular caught her eye. "Hello, Rifka," she called softly.
The elf looked over to Trysten, then padded over. "Hello, Miss Moonjade," she greeted solemnly.
"You can call me Trysten," the girl reminded her.
"What can Rifka do for Miss Moonjade?"
"Well, actually I was wondering if-" A small pop interrupted Trysten's sentence, and another small elf stood at Rifka's side. "Hello, Dobby."
"Hello, Miss Trysten," Dobby squeaked suspiciously. "How is Miss Moonjade this morning?"
"I am well. And yourself? Rifka?" she asked, looking between the two elves.
"It does not matter how Rifka is," she told Trysten, bowing her head.
"Of course it does," Trysten protested. The elf merely turned and walked back to the kitchen. "How are you, Dobby?"
"Dobby is fine, miss," he told her. "Is there something Dobby can do?"
"Well, first I'd like to ask if you've rethought my offer of help."
"No, Dobby cannot let Miss Moonjade help. She might hurt Harry Potter."
Trysten smiled. "I must say, I admire your devotion to Harry. If my request conflicts with your orders, I shall stop bothering you about it. I know you are unable to contradict your orders. Well, without great suffering."
"Oh, no, Dobby is a free elf. Harry Potter freed Dobby from the evil masters, the M-Malfoys."
"Malfoy?" Trysten asked, genuinely surprised. "As in Draco Malfoy?" Dobby cowered for a moment. "I am sorry; I shouldn't have spoken of it. Anyway, the reason I was here—could I have a breakfast basket to go? Not as big as before, though, please."
"Will Miss Trysten always come here for meals?"
"Probably," she blushed. "I don't go into the Great Hall that often."
"How does Miss Trysten know Harry Potter, then?" Dobby asked, eying Trysten suspiciously.
"We have a few classes together," she explained. Before Dobby could question her further, Rifka apparated in front of Trysten, shoved a breakfast basket in Trysten's arms and gave her a weak push toward the door. "Thank you, Rifka. I will be seeing you, Dobby. Feel free to visit me anytime."
Rifka closed the door behind Trysten, leaving her to wonder at the elf's haste. Shrugging it off, Trysten ambled towards the edge of the lake, preferring to have her breakfast amidst the peeking sun and morning mist. She sat in a grassy area, looking out across the glassy lake and eating the food Rifka provided for her. She remained there until she had to go to Divination.
Harry awoke with a start, heat searing his forehead. "Good, you're up, mate," Ron yawned. "It's about time for breakfast."
"Yeah," Harry mumbled, his palm resting against his scar. He rubbed his eyes and put on his glasses, and his waking roommates came into focus.
"Hurry up, Harry, it's my favorite this morning," Ron whined.
"I'm coming," Harry told him, groggily pulling on his uniform and robes. Running a hand through his hair and slipping his shoes on, Harry followed Ron downstairs to meet Hermione in the commons room.
"Hello Ron, Harry," she chirped happily, ever the morning person. "We've got just enough time to get a relaxed meal in before Divination."
"Ugh, don't remind me," Harry moaned.
"But Hermione, I thought you dropped divination…?" Ron asked, confused.
"If Firenze wasn't teaching, I would have, rather than waste my time on that fake, imposturous-"
"Hermione," Harry warned her. Hermione took a deep breath and smiled apologetically. "Shall we?" Harry asked, his stomach urging him on to breakfast. Ron and Hermione nodded, and the made their way down to the Great Hall.
They sat in their usual places, accompanied by Seamus, Dean, Ginny, Lavender, and Neville. Laughter flew freely from most of the teens, but Harry forced smiles and laughter, the happiness never truly reaching his core.
"What do you think, Harry?" Lavender asked him.
"Huh? Oh…I'm afraid I was in my own world for a minute there. Sorry."
"It's alright," Hermione told him. "Lavender asked you if you thought Snape would give us another parchment today."
"Oh. I don't know," Harry said lamely. "Probably. It's Snape, after all." There were murmurs of agreement, and Harry was once again left to his thoughts. However, before Harry could become lost within them, a hand tugged on his arm.
"Come on, Harry. We have to get to Divination." Harry chomped down his piece of toast and followed Ron, Hermione, and Neville to Divination with Firenze.
"But Divination is a bunch of rubbish," a familiar voice whined.
"Quiet, Ron. At least we have Firenze," Hermione snapped. Unnoticed by the group, Trysten Moonjade slipped in behind them, walking unnoticed into class.
"Well, well, what have we here? Weaselby and Mudblood with "the chosen one"." Draco Malfoy stepped in front of the group, flanked by Crabbe, Goyle, and Pansy Parkinson, as per usual. Before they could take notice of her presence, Trysten moved out from the back of them, walking along the walls of the room until she was out of sight, now that all attention was turned to the stand-off.
"Back off, Malfoy," Harry hissed.
"Oh, I'm scared," Draco mocked. Quietly, Trysten ducked into Firenze's office, only to find herself staring straight into his chest, which was mere inches away.
"Sorry, Professor, I just thought you should know that Draco and Harry are at it again."
Firenze rolled his eyes. "Wizards," he sighed. "Oh, and Trysten?"
Trysten froze and looked up at her professor, with whom she had grown quite close to (or as close as any were to Trysten). "Yes, Firenze?"
"Today we're working in groups." At her horror-stricken face, he held up a hand. "But, I thought you would feel this way, so you will be working on your own, if that's alright." She nodded. "You'll have the table by my office door. Now if you would," he gestured to the door.
"Of course, Firenze. Thank you," Trysten told him softly, quickly exiting and joining the crowd.
"Mr. Potter, Mr. Malfoy," Firenze boomed, having seen them in dueling position. "I will have none of that in my class, is that understood? Now today we'll be working in groups of three. Choose your own partners, but I will expect you to be productive, so beware." He paused as the students got settled. "Good. Now on your table you will find a crystal ball and a textbook. I believe you all learned how to read a crystal ball in Miss Trelawney's class, yes?" A few mumbles of assent were heard. "Now you will be doing the same, but looking into broader aspects. One partner will be the subject, another the reader, and the third will look through the text to retrieve the meanings of the symbols you may not have learned. Get to it," Firenze clapped. Immediately the room was filled with chatter. Ignored, Firenze moved to the table at which Trysten was sitting. "Miss Moonjade, seeing as you have chosen not to partner, and I must see to the class, your assignment is quite different, but remotely the same. It is more advance magic, but you have been excelling in my class, and I believe you are ready for it." Trysten nodded her understanding. "Now, you're going to do a flame reading." Trysten's eyes widened. "Oh, you've heard of it before?"
"Yes, Professor Firenze. While my family was in Egypt, a woman we stayed with was quite fond of them," she told him.
"Do you know how it works?" Firenze asked.
"In theory," she admitted.
"Alright. It's the same concept as the crystal readings. All you need to do is spell the person's name with the powder I have placed here, picturing them in your mind. Say their name and the incantation 'Incendi lumo spectra'. A ball of flame will appear. Peer within the seeing." He patted her shoulder. "Chose who you wish. I'll cast a charm so none can see you." With that, Firenze mumbled a few words, a flash of light appeared, and he turned his attention to the class.
Tentatively, Trysten dipped her hand into the powder, unsure of who to see for. Glancing around the room, Trysten spelled out carefully, 'Harry Potter.' With a flick of her wand she murmured, "Incendi lumo spectra," and watched as the dust from the letters swirled in to the air, forming a ball, which quickly burst into flame. She stared into the flames, emptying her mind. Nothing came to her and, with a sigh, she flicked her wand, putting the fire out.
She tried 'Harry Potter' again, this time abandoning her wand as she murmured the incantation. The flame appeared again and she stared within the depths once more. Flickers of images appeared:
a dark haired boy in a small, confined space, the same boy cleaning, a fat man screaming at him, the boy face to face with a snake while a fat boy sat in a snake's cage, a man towering in the doorway of a dark, wet shack—
"Trysten?" Firenze called softly. Trysten sat back with a gasp, the flame in front of her popping out of existence. "Miss Moonjade? Are you alright?" he asked, stepping closer.
"Y-yes, I just…was surprised by what I saw." Trysten looked around her. "The room's empty. Is class over?"
"I dismissed it early, yes. There are still fifteen minutes until the next class."
"Alright, thanks...Firenze?" He raised his eyebrows in answer. "What…exactly does the flame show us?"
"Good question, Miss Moonjade. It shows a variety of things but usually focuses on the past—traumatic of life-changing memories. Sometimes a vague look into the future may be seen, but it is not often. There are a few other possible effects, but they are highly improbable."
"That you, Firenze," Trysten told him, slinging her bag over her shoulder. "I'll see you tomorrow." Firenze clipped his head politely and watched Trysten leave the room, wondering what she viewed in her seeing.
Arithmancy passed Trysten in a blur, moving mechanically as her mind wandered to her seeing. So caught up in her thoughts, she allowed her feet to lead her where they wished. With no interference on her stomach's part, Trysten found herself standing at the entrance to Hagrid's hut. Mentally shrugging her shoulders, she took a breath and knocked. Hearing no answer, she knocked again, louder.
"Hagrid?" She called loudly. Trying the knob, she saw it was open, so she swung open the door, revealing an empty cabin. Fang lay sleeping in his basket, his giant paw twitching in his dreams. The fire was out and the light cast in from the covered windows set about an eerie glow. Something seemed off, so Trysten entered the cabin, glancing about. Everything seemed in place, so Trysten left through the back door, securing the door behind her, wand at the ready.
Still receiving an odd feeling, Trysten decided it would be best to just go to the castle again. Turning to leave, she tensed and froze. An icy breath of air graced her back, and, clutching her wand, she turned to face what was behind her.
A startled gasp escaped her lips as she saw what stood before her. White, shining eyes peered into hers, captivating and intelligent. Drawing her eyes away, Trysten examined the creature. Draconic wings adorned the skeletal, black body of a horse, the face and neck slightly draconic as well. "A…a thestral?" Trysten asked incredulously. The thestral bowed its head, through whether in greeting of affirmation Trysten could not be sure. Suddenly, everything Trysten learned about thestrals came rushing back to her. "Carnivorous," she mumbled aloud. "Thought to be a bad omen, but not. Wickedly fast flyers, wonderful sense of direction. Attracted to the smell of blood." She paused. "Blood? There's no blood here." She looked around her, then looked the thestral in the eyes. "Is there?"
Trysten tentatively took a step forward, and the thestral quickly closed the gap between them. Oddly trusting and entranced by the thestral's eyes, Trysten stood her ground. After what felt like an eternity, she carefully set a hand on the thestral's shoulder, taking in the leathery material stretched over hard, jutting bones. "You're beautiful," she murmured honestly.
The thestral stamped its foot impatiently and Trysten removed her hand, the thestral nipping playfully at it as she stepped back. She smirked at the thestral, wondering why the day had to get weirder. As she stepped farther back, the thestral stared at her, seeming to peer into her soul. Suddenly, it took flight, zooming back over the forest, and then somewhere within its depths. Shaking her head in an unbelieving gesture, she turned to head back to the castle, not seeing the pair of eyes following her from the edge of the Forbidden Forest.
